Sono Sicilia!
by blackkitten13
Summary: This story is about a girl named Rosaria Vargas, but very few people know her true identity as the Personification of the Island of Sicily. To us humans, she is strange, but among her people- her fellow nations- she is family. NOTE: This is a rewrite from the original story.
1. The Small Island Girl

This story is about a girl named Rosaria Vargas, but very few people know her true identity as the Personification of the Island of Sicily. To us humans, she is strange, but among her people- her fellow nations- she is family. Our story begins not in present day, but with where our darling girl came from. It begins a long time ago, back during the time of the mighty Roman Empire...

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><p><strong>The Small Island Girl<strong>

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><p>A newly conquered land. That's what Rome originally thought of the island- just another piece of land. He didn't know that, like himself, the land he had just took was tied to that of a person, only a small child at the time.<p>

Rome looked at his soldier. He held a small girl in his hands. She was dressed as if she was a Grecian, but her clothes had been torn by something and she was barefoot. Her hair was a mess and matted by mud and many other things, but the beautiful auburn color still shone through. Her eyes were the color of dirt, but they also sparkled like jewels. Unlike most children Rome had seen, the girl's tender skin was littered with cuts, bruises, and scratches. It looked like as if she had been attacked. But who would harm such a small girl? She couldn't have been more than two years old. Despite her state, the child was fighting against the soldier's grip.

"I found her trying to steal food, sir," the soldier explained, "What do you want me to do with her?"

"Please don't hurt me!" cried the child, "I haven't eaten in days, not since-" The soldier covered her mouth to keep her from speaking anymore. Rome looked towards his soldier and back down at the child. Her eyes held fear and terror.

"It's fine," Rome answered after a long pause, "Let the girl go."

"But sir-" the soldier said.

"She's just a lost child, Marcus. Now put her down and leave us be." With a confused look on his face, the soldier placed the girl on the ground and left the two alone.

Rome knelt down to the girl's level. She took a step back.

"I'm not going to hurt you." The girl shook her head wildly and took another step back.

"Papa told me not to trust the Romans," the little girl stated confidently before her voice slackened, "I-I think." Rome stood up. The girl took another step back. He managed however, to get a look at the back of her head. Among the mud in her hair, there was also a great deal of dried blood. She must have gotten hurt somehow, and the injury must have caused her to lose her memory.

"I assure you that you can trust me," said Rome in a voice he only reserved for two people. "It hurts, doesn't it?" The girl hesitated for a moment but nodded slowly. "Will you let me take a look at it?" She shook her head. "Will you trust me?" After another moment's hesitation, the girl nodded. She walked towards Rome until she was right in front of him. Rome knelt down to face her. He was finally able to get a good look at the child and discovered something strange. Lifting her face, Rome turned her head to the right. Underneath the dirt and blood, a small piece of hair seemed to stand up on its own to form a curl like shape.

The child turned her head away from his gaze. Neither one of them moved. Rome now clearly knew who this child was. The final words of Cathrage burned in the back of the Roman's mind.

_"Even with my death...you will never truly have Syracuse."_

He wasn't talking about the land, no, but Cathrage instead spoke of a child. And Syracuse was right in front of him.

"What is your name?" Rome asked her. Syracuse shook her head.

"I don't think I have a name," she answered. So it was true, the child had no memory of Cathrage or anything else. As for her injuries...he had caused them. "Are you alright, sir?" Rome snapped out of his daze.

"Yes I am. But please, don't call me sir."

"What can I call you?" The child asked. Her eyes were now big and bright and something in them made the light brown color shine like the stars. Rome now felt bad for the child. Syracurse would have no memory of her life, she was hurt and it was because of him. The Empire felt pity in his heart, which had been a rare occurance in these times. He had only two options and the first was put out of his mind almost as soon as it came. He wasn't going to abandon Syracuse here.

"You can call me your grandfather, okay?" Syracuse nodded and smiled. It was the least Rome could do to take the child in. I mean...it was his fault she was now like this.

"But what are you going to call me?" Syracuse asked curiously. Rome thought carefully about his next words. He could not, under any circumstance, call her by her true name. This child was no longer Syracuse. She had lost all that a long time ago. The girl needed a new name- a new identity.

"You, my child," said Rome, "are my granddaughter. You are my beloved Sicily."


	2. Boss Spain

**The Boss Spain**

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><p><em>"Fratello, where are we going?" Sicily asked Italy as he took her by the hand and began to lead her to who knows where.<em>

_"Ve, I'm taking you to meet a friend of mine!" said Italy as he continued to drag the small girl behind him. After dragging her a few more meters, they came to stop. Sicily looked at her brother, who was looking around the area._

_"Fratello, what are you doing?"_

_"He said he would be here. He really wants to meet you!" Sicily tilted her head in confusion._

_"Italia!" shouted a voice. Sicily jumped and hid behind Italy. A young boy ran up to both of them. He had somewhat curly brown hair, green eyes and lightly tanned skin. He had a large smile on his face._

_"Ciao, Spagna!" replied Italy._

_"I'm really sorry that I'm late. Someone pulled me off track," said the boy, "Qué? Who's this?" Italy gave Sicily a reassuring smile._

_"This is mia sorellina!" Italy said "I wanted you to meet her!" The boy knelt down to the children's eye level. He gave Sicily a little smile and held out his hand. Slowly, Sicily reached out and took it._

_"Estoy España," he said, "But you can call me Spain. What about you, pequeña?"_

_"I am Sicily," Sicily told him shyly, "Il mio nome è la Sicilia…" Spain smiled and ruffled his free hand through Sicily's hair._

_"Well, Sicilia, I hope that you and I can be freinds, si?" Sicily nodded._

_"Si, España."_

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><p>Sicily couldn't find the right words to describe her mood right now. She and her older brother, Romano, had been put under control by Spain. Don't get me wrong, Sicily enjoyed Spain's company. It was just that...she didn't want to leave her brother behind.<p>

Sure, Sicily loved Romano, very dearly in fact although he did not return the feeling. It was Italy Veneziano she was worried about. The last time Sicily had left someone behind...she didn't want to think about it. As the three continued their journey, Sicily let one, small tear roll down her cheek.

No one noticed this...no one but Spain.

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><p>Spain was happy to have Romano and Sicily in his custody. They would give him a chance to put his parenting skills to the test. It didn't seem that hard. A little kindness and a little discipline. Simple. It would be easy raising these two.<p>

Spain hummed quietly to himself as the small trio journeyed on towards his house. He had stopped midst his song when he heard someone crying softly. Glancing back, Spain saw the small island wiping her eyes hastily. His green eyes softened at the sight of Sicily crying. It hurt his heart. Had he failed at being a parent already?

The Spaniard slowed his walking so that he was walking beside Sicily. He looked down at the small girl. Her curl bounced slightly with each step, and her auburn hair was tied with a blue ribbon at the base of her neck. Her bangs were parted straight down the middle and fell into her face. They seemingly covered her eyes. Spain thought the child looked very cute this way, in fact he thought all children were adorable, but when the Hispanic saw a crying child, it made his heart break.

"Are you alright, mi pequeña?" asked Spain, running a hand across the girl's head. The girl nodded. Spain knew she was lying. A strange man had once told him when he was far younger, that if children cried it was because they wanted attention or because they were hurt or afraid, but when they cried silently, it's because they just couldn't stop.

"I know you're lying." Sicily pulled away from him and began walking faster, so she was right behind Romano. Spain watched the girl with a surprised look on his face. Sicily reached out for her brother's hand, but Romano smacked her hand away from his. Spain walked up and walked beside the two.

The two siblings were as different as day and night, but Spain would not know how different they really were until much later.

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><p>That night, Spain went to check on both of his charges. Romano had fallen asleep like that, which was weird since he had been asleep most of the day. His youngest charge however, hadn't even looked at him when he entered the room, but the Spaniard could tell she was still crying.<p>

"Sicilia," said Spain as he knelt down by her bed, "Tell me what's wrong."

"No," Sicily answered. Her voice was wavering and cracking. Spain put his hand on her shoulder. She shook it off and curled closer into a ball.

"I'm not leaving until you tell me what's wrong." Sicily didn't say anything. Sighing, Spain sat down on the bed and looked over at Sicily. Although the dark and dim of the candlelight almost hid it, Spain could clearly see her bloodshot eyes and the tearstains on her face. Why was she crying, and why she tell him what was wrong? Spain put his hand on Sicily's arm. She didn't jerk him away like before.

"Por favor, Sicilia. I can't help you if I don't know what's wrong." Sicily didn't say anything. Instead, she crawled over to Spain and laid her head down on his shoulder. She wiped her eyes and did nothing more. "You know you can tell me…" Spain wrapped an arm around the small child.

"Non voglio fratello scomparire," Sicily muttered. Spain perked up.

"Qué?" asked Spain. Sicily buried her head deeper into his shirt, staining it with tears as the fell out of her eyes and streaked her face.

"I don't want fratello to disappear…" she said tearily. "I don't want him to leave us…" Spain looked at the crying child with wide eyes.

"Sicilia, what are you talking about? No one's going to disappear." He ran calming hand down her back as she cried.

"I didn't want to leave Veneziano...He's going to disappear like Nonno Roma did. He left and never came back! And now, I left fratello...I'm not going to see him again! He's alone! He's not going to-"

"Sicilia...Look at me," said Spain. Sicily looked up at Spain with watery eyes. Sapin felt an arrow strike his heart just by looking at the sadness she had drawn across her face.

"No one is going to disappear," he said calmly, "I understand how you feel right now, but you have to trust me when I say that Italy will not disappear. He has Hungary and Austria and Holy Rome." Sicily nodded as Spain wiped a stray tear off of her cheek.

"I miss fratello…" muttered the small girl.

"Well...one day, when you're a strong Nation and all grown up, you two will be able to be together. Until then, It's you, me, Romano, Belgium and Netherlands. Alright?" Sicily nodded.

"Promise?" Spain nodded.

"Prometo!" He said. Spain picked up the child and put her back in her bed. "Now, try and get some sleep, si?"

"Si," said Sicily with a yawn. Spain smiled, picked up the candle and left the room. As soon as the door shut, he leaned against it.

"Maybe this parenting thing would be much harder than I thought…"

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><p>The next day, Sicily was her normal self again. Only, Spain noticed that she was working harder than she should've.<p>

"Sicilia, what are you doing?" asked Spain as the girl walked past him, carrying a bucket.

"I'm working hard, just like you said!" she replied with a large smile, "That way I can be a strong country like you!" Spain smiled and laughed as the girl continued on with her chores. He was smiling at the fact that maybe he wasn't going to be a bad parent after all.


	3. The Black Death

**The Black Death**

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><p><em>The year was 1656. Many things happened in this random 17th century year. But also, something dastardly still plagued Europe at this time. Actually, while doing my research for this chapter, I saw that it was still around, even back then, and still is. I believe that we really need to do something about it...God… If you don't believe me, look it up for yourself.<em>

_Just a little warning from me. This will most likely be little...graphic...in some images if you haven't already gotten the picture from the title. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter...what the hell did I just write?_

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><p>It was a beautiful day at the Spanish household. Belgium watched as the little Italian girl worked her hardest to clean the house. It made her smile. Sicily had a large amount of determination, and Belgium could tell that she wanted to make Spain proud of her.<p>

Sicily rushed past Belgium with a dirty water-filled bucket in her hands. Belgium laughed and continued her own work. She began humming quietly to herself in Dutch. Not long after, she felt something pull on the hem of her dress. Looking down, Belgium saw Sicily at her feet. However, there was something visibly wrong. Sicily's face had become red with heat. Belgium knelt down to her level.

"Sicily? Is everything okay?" she asked the child. Sicily nodded slowly and held the small bucket she had in her hands up to Belgium. Maybe she had forgotten where the well was again. Belgium took the bucket from Sicily, and held the child's hand in her own. It felt warmer than usual.

"Are you sure you're alright?" the Belgian asked once again. Sicily nodded.

"Si, Belgium," she replied, "I'm fine-" Before Sicily could respond with anymore, she turned away from Belgium quickly. A harsh sounding cough came out of her mouth. Belgium's face fell.

"You're not alright. You stay here, and I'll go get Sp-" Belgium couldn't even finish her sentence at what happened next. Sicily fell into a bloody cough that no child should even have to endure. She fell, with Belgium catching her in her arms. The blonde ran a hand through Sicily's hair, trying to calm her and herself down. Belgium was in a daze of confusion. Something was happening to the child, most likely an attack. But who would attack such a small girl?

Soon, Sicily's coughing ceased, but the girl's breath was ragged. Belgium's skirt was now stained with her blood. Belgium felt sweat run down her face.

"Sp-Spain!" Belgium cried out. Her voice echoed through the hall. "SPAIN! SPANJE!" a tear slid down Belgium's face as Sicily picked up her cough again. Blood splattered from her mouth.

"SPAIN!" As soon as Sicily stopped her violent fit, Belgium heard the footsteps running towards her.

"Belgium?" asked a familiar accent, "¿Qué pasa? ¿Por qué estás gritando de esa manera? Romano and I ran out from the fields and everything." Another tear slid down down the Belgian's face. "Bélgica?"

"Spain… It's Sicily," Belgium finally managed to say, "She just collapsed. I didn't know what to do!" Romano, who had followed Spain, looked up at the Spaniard.

"I don't see what the problem is," Romano muttered, "She likely was up late last night again. She's just tired. I say we leave her alone." Belgium turned to the two boys with the girl in her arms.

"Spain… she started coughing up blood…" The normally tan teen paled.

"But...why would someone attack her? She's just a niña!" Belgium looked down at the girl once more, pushing a strand of her auburn hair away from her pale face. That's when she saw it. Belgium began shaking her head, tears leaking out of her green eyes.

"She's not being attacked…" Spain gave her a weird look. Belgium held up Sicily's hand. Spain paled even further. Romano just stared on in curiosity.

Sicily's fingertips had turned black.

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><p>Spain and Belgium sat by Sicily's bedside. The child was asleep and looked comfortable enough, but her breathing was still forced. Spain had sent the order to cut off all access between Sicily's place and any other country. They didn't need another epidemic on their hands. Romano had suffered something similar not too long ago, but since he and Italy were half of each other, the damage wasn't as harsh. Only each brother took half of the pain- not the full blow.<p>

As for the boy himself, Romano was in his bedroom. He had been put in there as a safety precaution. Romano really didn't like it, but it was the way it had to be until this problem could be fixed.

"I don't understand," Spain said as he paced back and forth across the room, "This thing disappeared over a hundred years ago. How could she have it?"

"I don't know," replied Belgium, "It started at her place, didn't it?" Spain nodded.

"From the trading ships, yes. It spread out from there." Spain looked back towards the girl. Sicily was one of the first ones to get it. Nearly every European Nation had it. Every single time there was an outbreak, it would take it's toll on the Nation. They would be sick with the disease until the outbreak ended. But...that was a hundred years ago. Why had it resurfaced now?

Sicily broke into another coughing fit, turning over in her sleep and staining the linen with red specks. Spain sighed. He walked over to the child a ran a hand through her hair, calming her down enough to remain asleep.

"I just don't know what I'm going to do…" he said, tangling his fingers through the auburn strands, "I'm busy enough as it is. I can't take care of her and run my empire at the same time…" Spain turned to Belgium. "Bélgica? Think you could run it? Just for a little while?"

"Spain, I'm surprised at you!" Belgium replied in shock, "I know you want to be a good parent, unlike your own father, but giving away your duties as a Nation is not the way to do it!"

"I just don't know what to do. Sicilia is mi niña. I can't let her down."

"I'll do it." Spain took his gaze away from the child and to the blonde beside him.

"Qué?" asked Spain, "I don't think I heard you right. Can you repeat that?"

"You heard me, Spain. I'll take care of Sicily until she is well again. She trusts me as much as she trusts you." Spain stood from the bedside. The two Nations looked at each other for a moment. "I'll handle it. You go and take care of your people. And I am not taking no for an answer." Spain looked at the ground. "It'll be fine. Go."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." Spain nodded and left the room.

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><p>Three days passed by and Sicily's health had still not improved. Belgium stayed by her bedside every time the girl was awake. In the meantime, she had to attend to her own duties. But time was not on the blonde's side. There was a distance between her and Sicily, which meant the girl was in pain longer than she was supposed to be, and Belgium had no way to prevent it...but someone did.<p>

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><p>Romano was not happy with the current situation. His idiota of a little sister was getting all of the attention. Romano felt as if she was the one everyone wanted to see. He was part of the country, too. She didn't need to have all of the attention. Sure, Spain gave him any attention he required, but the Spaniard was gone from the household for a while. Only he, Belgium and his sister were left, and Belgium was spending most of her time with his sister. Romano hated it. He hated his sister.<p>

Romano walked down the long corridor. It was strangely quiet, but with only three people in the house it was to be expected. Romano walked past her door. As soon as he did, a quiet cry came from the other side. It had to have been her. She must have woken up. Romano ignored it and kept on walking. Belgium would take care of it. She had been doing so for the past few days, right?

Romano kept on walking. However, the cry didn't cease. It just kept going at this low tone. His sister's voice was filled with pain. He could barely remember that pain himself, but Romano remembered her staying by him when he was hurt. Why she had done that, Romano didn't know. He treated her like she was nothing most of the time, yet she wouldn't leave. Heck, she barely even left him alone. It felt kinda weird not to have her following him all the time.

"I have to be folle…" Romano muttered to himself as he walked back towards the door. He turned the doorknob and slowly opened it. His sister laid there, crying softly. He muttered under his breath. Her fingers with still as black as the night. A large spot of red was beside her pillow. Romano knew that it was blood. He had seen Spain come back from his trips with blood on himself and his clothes. Her face was far from pale and it made her look as if she was dead.

Something happened then. Romano felt like he himself was going to die. There was the large weight of guilt that had decided to lay itself on his shoulders.

So, he poked her shoulder. The girl muttered something before coughing briefly, expelling a little blood from her mouth. Romano poked her again.

"Hey...you're not dead, are you?" There was a soft cry, but nothing else. Romano shook her shoulders. His sister didn't move much.

He put his hand to her forehead, as he had seen Belgium do before. Romano pulled his hand away immediately. She was burning hot. No wonder she was crying like that. What was he supposed to do now? Belgium hadn't gotten here yet. She always came rushing whenever his sister woke in pain. Where the hell was she?

Romano became confused. There had to be something to calm the child down. He had seen Spain hum quietly to her, and that usually worked whenever his sister was hurt, scared, etc.

"There is no way in hell I am doing that…" Romano muttered to himself. She turned over and faced him. Her light brown eyes were closed tightly, and her auburn hair was stained with sweat. Her blackened fingers weakly wrapped around Romano's hand and gripped it tightly. Romano almost jumped back at the sudden contact. He stared at the girl. Even when she looked like she was dead, his sister wanted to be close to him.

"L-Let…" Romano stuttered. Her cries ceased. All she wanted was her big brother.

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><p>Belgium ran through the hallway, her feet thudding against the floor. She had fallen asleep after finishing her work, and was supposed to check on the youngest female about two hours ago.<p>

She opened the door to find a sight she never expected to see. Romano was fast asleep by his sister's bedside, and Sicily had her blackened fingers wrapped tightly around his hand. Belgium laughed silently at the scene. She closed the door, letting the siblings have their moment.

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><p>Over the next three weeks, Sicily's health slowly returned to normal. What both Belgium and Spain found strange was that Romano, who hated his sister, was by her door nearly the entire time.<p>

Once Sicily was better, she returned to herself. Although, the strange thing was that she had begun to stay with Romano even more. Although she claimed not to remember much from when she was sick, Spain believed that she did remember her brother being by her side. Maybe somewhere, Romano did care for his sister. He was just too stubborn to admit it. Hopefully something will happen in the future to break to stone wall Romano had put up to keep his sister out of his heart.


	4. Axis Powers

**Axis Powers**

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><p><em>Alright! 1941! I can't remember anything that happened in this year! Wait...why am I happy about that? Huh… anyway, during the 1940s, where most of Hetalia is set, war ravaged Europe. That's right, I'm talking about Axis vs Allies! If you really haven't noticed, Sicily was in fact part of the Axis Powers with her older brothers. Though two people were against it… but nevermind! In this chapter, Sicily ends up meeting Italy's allies- Germany and Japan. The first impression of one another is not exactly a good one… Enjoy this chapter!<em>

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><p>It was a quiet and peaceful morning, and Sicily laid sound asleep in her bedroom. It was the first time in a while she was actually able to get a decent sleep. The boys would be arguing by the crack of dawn. However, her peaceful dream was not to last.<p>

A loud bang on the door caused Sicily's dirt-like eyes to spring open. She sat up before realizing that the sound had faded away. She sighed and ran a hand through her tangled auburn hair.

"It was probably a dream," she said with a little laugh. Sicily fell back down on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. With a sigh, she turned over in an attempt to fall back asleep. She pulled her sheets up closer and was about to slip back into her dream world when the loud noise repeated. Sicily bolted straight up.

"That definitely wasn't a dream…" She made an effort to tear off her sheets, but instead got tangled up in them and fell to the floor in her drowsiness. Sicily pulled herself to her feet and cautiously left her room. She walked down the stairs as the loud noise ricocheted again. It was coming from the door. With a sigh, she quickened her pace. It couldn't have been any earlier than 8:00 A.M. What was someone doing at the door?

Sicily rubbed any sleep she had left out of her eyes and opened the door with a yawn.

"Buongiorno," she yawned, "Che diamine vuoi?" Sicily blinked her eyes to let her vision adjust. That's when her face flushed red. At the door were two men. The first was a tall, muscular man, with sleek blond hair and blue eyes. He wore a green military officer's uniform with a cross of some kind on the collar. The second was short, (actually he was around Sicily's height, so to her he didn't seem short at all,) slim man with black hair, dull dark brown eyes, and was wearing a white naval uniform with black and gold accents.

"Scusa," Sicily said quickly, "I didn't mean to be so rude…" The shorter one nodded.

"We don't rearry speak Italian, so prease don't worry about it," he said with a calm tone.

"It doesn't matter," the taller one added, "Ve're looking for Feliciano Vargas. Vhere is he?" Sicily gave a look to the taller one.

"I don't know. You sort of forced me out of bed…"

"You can get back to your sleep vhen you tell us vhere Feliciano is." Sicily rolled her eyes. She didn't know where her brother was, which meant he had probably left without waking her up to tell her where he was going. Come to think of it...Sicily hadn't see Romano either. Where were they?

"I already said that I don't know. Look, you two can wait in here until he gets back from where ever he ran off to." Sicily stepped aside to allow the two men inside the home. The shorter man bowed slightly before entering. The taller one followed. "I'm going to head upstairs. I'll be back in a minute." Before either man could say anything, Sicily bolted to the second floor, slamming her door behind her.

"Veneziano has some explaining to do…" she muttered to herself.

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><p>After about an hour of searching, Sicily finally found what she was looking for. An uniform of her own. She really didn't have an uniform like many other countries did. Her boss forbade her from even fighting in any battles a long time ago, since she was a girl, and that rule had stuck. So, Sicily went with plan B. "Borrowing" pieces from Romano's and Italy's. That's what they get for letting her handle the laundry.<p>

Sicily looked at herself in the mirror as she secured her ponytail at the base of her neck. Her shirt and tie were both Italy's. The shirt was a button-up black with the tie being a brilliant blue. The rest of it came from Romano. She wore tan pants and a tan military jacket. Since Romano was larger than her, Sicily had spent a good amount of time previously working out the length of her sleeves and pant legs so that they actually did fit her. However, the jacket was still too long and large. Sicily instead kept it fitted around her body with a thick, brown belt around her waist. She had added a pair of black boots to the uniform as well.

Sicily twirled around in the mirror. Her bangs still fell into her face. She sighed and pinned them back with her four hair pins- two of them gold and two of them red- which mirrored each other perfectly.

"Much better…" Sicily muttered to herself, "No hair in my face...I still haven't figured out the rest of that." Sicily left her bedroom and headed back down the stairs, where the two men were talking to each other in languages she didn't understand. When they noticed Sicily standing there, they stopped.

"I wasn't interrupting anything important, was I?" she asked. The shorter one shook his head.

"Not at arr," he said. Sicily smiled weakly as the three were casted into an awkward silence. That was, until, the taller one broke it.

"How do you know Feliciano?" he asked. Sicily blinked several times before coming to a conclusion. Italy hadn't told them about her. She smirked.

"I could ask you the same thing," Sicily said with a small laugh, "But to answer your question, I live here with him and his brother. I've been here for about...eight years?" Lie. She had been living with them for eighty. "So, how do you two know him? I'm pretty sure he's never mention you before."

"We are his-" said the shorter one before the tall one cut him off.

"Ve're his friends," he said, giving a look to the black-haired man, "Nozhing more, nozhing less." Sicily nodded and leaned back on the heel of her boots.

"Okay?" she said with a slight suspicion. What had Romano told her? Not to let anyone in the house when he and Italy were gone? Well, they were at war so it did make sen-... Sicily's eyes widened unnoticeably. There was a good chance she had just let the enemy into the house. She laughed uncomfortably. The men glanced at each other. "So...I'm pretty sure that Feliciano will be back soon…"

"He better be… I don't have time for zhis…" muttered the blonde out loud.

"Right...I see...Wait what?"

"We arr had an agreement to meet at seven this morning," said the shorter man, "As you can see Fericiano-kun did not arrive." Sicily nodded. Although her feeling about these two being the ones who were fighting against her brothers did not go away.

"So, who are you two?" Sicily asked, "I'm pretty sure Feliciano would have mention you two to me if you were friends. He speaks very highly of his two closest ones."

"Ve already told you who ve are," the blonde said sternly, "Zhe question zhat remains to us is who you really are." Sicily felt sweat running down the back of her neck. If her thoughts were right, then she would be screwed if she told them the truth.

"Why do you want to know?" she asked, "I don't have to tell you who I am. Same reason that you don't have to tell me who you are." The blonde began to seethe slightly while the black-haired one sighed.

"Just answer zhe damn question."

"No. My brother told me that if I get asked any questions I don't want to answer, than I stay defiant and don't answer them!"

"Zhen your brother must have taught you vell since you're starting to get on my nerves!"

"Can we arr just prease carm down?" asked the short one.

"NO!" the blonde and Sicily both shouted.

"And if you know Feliciano, than you know my brother!" said Sicily.

"Vhat does zhat even mean?!" replied the blonde.

"You should know him because-" That's when all hell truly broke loose. The door opened and in walked the two Italian brothers. Romano was carrying a paper bag full of something, and Italy was bouncing right beside him.

"Sorella!" Italy called out as he entered. "We're home!"

"ITALIEN!" Italy jumped and hid behind Romano. "VHERE ZHE HOLY HELL VERE YOU!?"

"What?" Sicily said, although no one was really listening.

"We ran out of pasta, so Romano and I-" Italy began to say quickly before the blonde cut him off.

"Zhat is no excuse! Ve all agreed to meet at seven o'clock sharp. Und you decide to skip out on training again?!"

"Ve, I didn't remember! Please don't hurt me!" While the shorter man sighed again, Sicily clenched her fists in anger. Her light eyes narrowed. As she gritted her teeth together, Sicily stood between the blonde and her brother. Nobody spoke to Italy or Romano like that. Unless they want Sicilian wrath upon them.

"Leave mio fratello alone," she said. The two strangers looked at her in confusion.

"Nani?" said the black-haired one, "What did you say?"

"I said for you to leave my fratello alone, or else it won't end well." Italy laughed awkwardly as Romano quickly left the scene. Sicily could have sworn that there was an angry look on his face.

"Italien… vhat does she mean vhen she just called you her bruder?" asked the blonde. Italy put his arm around Sicily, knocking her out of her current angry state.

"I thought I told you both," Italy said with a laugh. "This is mia sorellina, my little sister." Sicily gave an awkward and embarrassed wave.

"Ciao," she said with a small laugh. "I'm Sicily…"

* * *

><p>After Italy gave a short explanation about his sister, he introduced the two men to Sicily.<p>

"Ve, I forgot I never introduced you three!" he said. "This is Germany and Japan!" Sicily gave a small wave as Japan bowed slightly. She stopped when she heard the names.

"So...these are your allies…?" Sicily asked. Italy nodded.

"Itary-kun mentioned that he had more than one sibring before, but I arways thought he had another brother…"

"Nope! Or at least I don't think I do…" Italy ran his fingers through Sicily's ponytail. "It's just me, Romano and Sicilia!" Sicily grabbed Italy's hand, making him stop.

"It doesn't matter," said Germany sharply, "Ve're leaving anyvay. Hurry up, Italy." Italy nodded as the Axis began to leave. Sicily stood up and began to walk over to the kitchen, seeing as Romano had not left it since the brothers had gotten home. Someone called out her name, making the girl turn back around. It was her Northern brother.

"Sorella? Do you want to come with us?" Italy asked her.

"Was?" Germany said, rather in surprise than in the expected anger.

"Nani?" muttered Japan, louder than it was supposed to come out.

"Che cosa?" Sicily said with a confused look on her face.

"I asked if you wanted to come with us," said Italy with a smile. "What? Was I not supposed to say that?"

"Nien," Germany muttered, "She's not part of zhe Axis, und she can't-"

"I would actually love to come…" Sicily admitted, "I've never been allowed to military training before. I won't be much trouble. I'll just watch you three, I promise." Sicily gave a small smile.

"I don't see what is wrong about retting her just observe us, Germany-san…" said Japan.

"I won't tell anyone what goes on! I keep myself loyal to my brothers!" Germany shook his head in annoyance and left. Italy and Japan stayed behind.

"Are you coming, sorella?" Italy asked. Sicily nodded and followed the Axis.

* * *

><p>This continued for about two months. During every training session, Italy asked Sicily if she wanted to come along. The answer was always yes. She would sit up on a nearby hill and watch the three men train. After a while, it became normal for Sicily to watch them. That's when Italy got an idea.<p>

"Germany? Japan?" Italy asked his allies as they finished up their training for the day, "Can I ask you both something?"

"Vhat is it, Italy?" Germany said with an agitated tone.

"I was wondering if we could let mia sorella join the Axis with us." Japan and Germany stared at their Italian ally. They exchanged glances with each other.

"No, Italy. I don't think zhat it vould be a good idea." Germany crossed his arms over his chest. "Your sister is exactly like you. I don't vant anozher Italy."

"If I recarr, Germany-san, Siciry-san stood between you and Itary-kun when we first met her," Japan added, "She arso stood against you. The onry way Siciry-san and Itary-kun are simirar is sorery on appearance." Germany ignored the Asian, but Japan had been right.

"If I remember, Italy, she also implied zhat she had no military training vhat so ever."

"Please, Germany?" Italy asked, "Sicilia's a fast learner! She'll pick up on all your training easily and quick!"

"I don't care! I don't need anozher Italian in zhe Axis! You all are confusing as it is!"

"Then why don't we vote on it? I say 'yes'!"

"Und my answer is still no. Japan?" Japan tensed.

"I know it is not my prace to be speaking against you, Germany-san," said the Japanese, "but this time, I agree with Itary-kun."

"Was?!" Japan nodded.

"I berieve if Siciry-san joined us, it wourd motivate Itary-kun to do better. She's arso a very kind girr from my perspective."

"Yay!" Italy cheered happily, "That's two votes against one!" Italy ran over to his sister.

"ITALY! GET BACK OVER HERE!"

* * *

><p>Sicily, seeing that the training had ended, jogged down from the hill to meet the three boys. She stopped halfway when she saw that they were in a vivid discussion. She heard her brother cheer loudly, followed by Germany calling after him. Italy ran over to Sicily. She jogged down the rest of the length to meet him at the bottom.<p>

"Are you ready to go home, fratello?" Sicily asked him. Italy shook his head.

"Sicilia! I have something very important to ask you!" Italy told her as both Germany and Japan walked over to the siblings. "Japan, Germany and I agreed that-"

"To clarify, I did not agree to zhis," said Germany. Sicily rolled her eyes.

"What is it?" she asked Italy.

"Do you want to join the Axis with us?" Sicily froze. A wide smile appeared on her face.

"Are you serious?" Italy nodded.

"We talked it over and everything! What do you say?" Sicily wrapped her arms around her brother's neck.

"Si! I would love to!"

"Great…" Sicily heard Germany say as she let her brother go, "Anozher Italian…" Japan bowed politely.

"Wercome to the Axis, Siciry-san," he said calmly.

"Grazie, Japan!" Italy grinned and took his sister's hand.

"Let's go celebrate! PASTA!" Italy ran off, dragging his sister in tow.

"ITALY! GET BACK HERE! VE NEED TO FINISH YOUR TRAINING!" shouted Germany. He bolted after the Italians, with Japan following after.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, two people were hiding in the nearby bushes. They had just observed the entire scene.<p>

"It seems like ze Axis 'ave a new belle among zeir ranks…" muttered one of them.

"For once, I agree with you," said the other, "We should tell the other Allies."

"Oui, my black sheep."

"Don't touch me, frog. Let's just go." The first man nodded, and the two raced off to inform the Allies of the newest Axis member.


	5. Sicily's San Valentino

**Sicily's San Valentino**

* * *

><p><em>Ah, Valentine's Day...a day that is a pain in my ass. Mostly because I'm single and never had a boyfriend...I'm a sad teenage girl. This is why I take advantage of the chocolate sales and buy a load of sweets! Yay, chocolate! I also use this day to work on my fanfiction and watch Disney movies. Anyway, Sicily is in a similar situation with me. Due to Romano being so overprotective, not a single male Nation can get closer to her. It's like with Liechtenstein and Switzerland...only with less guns, but she does do something special to celebrate. Enjoy this special holiday chapter!<em>

* * *

><p>Sicily woke up on a cold February day with sparkles in her eyes. She knew what day it was. San Valentino. St. Valentine's Day. A day for love, and a day when she, Hungary and Japan played matchmaker before celebrating themselves. Of course, Sicily couldn't celebrate like any other Italian would. Ever since World War II, Romano had been very overprotective of his little sister, not so much as letting one male Nation even try to flirt with her.<p>

Sicily quickly got dressed and called the other two Nations, putting it on speaker so she could get dressed while they talked. While Hungary sounded cheerful, Japan still sounded like his was still asleep. Sicily laughed awkwardly.

"Sorry, Japan," she said, "I forgot about the time difference…"

"It's is alright, Siciry-san," Japan said with a yawn. "I'm staying with America-san from a whire. It's onry a day earry over here." Sicily groaned at the mention of America's name. She and him didn't get along, exactly. She didn't like him, but he wanted her to like him. It was a hate/don't want to hate relationship.

"Are you two ready?" Hungary asked from her end.

"Si," said Sicily happily. "Give me my assignment, Miss Hungary!"

"It's the usual one, Sicily," said Hungary, "I'll take Prussia this time around. Germany says that he gets lonely and depressing around this time. Japan, since you're there, you can take America."

"Hai," said Japan before hanging up.

"Uh...Miss Hungary?" asked Sicily. "I forget who I had last year." Hungary sighed.

"Sicily. I know very well that you remember," said Hungary. "And how many times have I told you to just call me Hungary?" Sicily laughed nervously.

"About a million…but Hungary...We can never get them together. I've been doing this for at least fifty years. Maybe it's hopeless."

"Sicily! I'm surprised at you! You've been vorking so hard to at least get them to notice each other! I mean, they like each other. The entire vorld knows it, but they don't! Ve've even been taking bets on it. You promised you vould get them together, are you going to give up that easily!? Vhere's the Sicily I know? She vouldn't give up! No, she vants to see him happy. She loves to see him smile! Are you going to vatch him spend another Valentine's Day alone?" Sicily began to build up her determination from Hungary's speech.

"No, she wouldn't- I mean I won't give up! This will be the year it happens!"

"That's the spirit! I gotta go. I'll check in with you later."

"Right! Talk to you later!" The line clicked. Sicily sighed and picked up her phone. "How on earth am I going to keep Romano from finding out?"

* * *

><p>However, unknown to Sicily, a certain Southern Italian had been walking past the door and couldn't help but catch the last few bits of Sicily's conversation with Hungary. His face paled. Unlike what the girls were actually talking about, Romano believed that his sister was planning on actually going out this Valentine's Day. On a date. With a Nation.<p>

He covered his mouth in order to keep himself from cursing at a rapid pace. Sicily had always gotten all weird over the topic of love. Of course, every Italian naturally had that charm that could make anyone swoon, but Sicily never showed to have it. It still didn't explain why she was going out!

Suddenly the door opened. Sicily stood there, dressed vividly in a red t-shirt and white jeans. Even her gold hair pins were switched out for white ones. She looked beautiful as she always did. But the expression on her face was a curious one.

"Romano?" she said, "Were you listening in on me?"

"No," Romano lied, "No I wasn't. Anyway, do you have any plans today? I was wondering if you could help me-"

"I do have plans today." Romano stiffened. "I'll be out until probably late tonight. Uh...Big brother? Are you okay?"

"I'm perfectly fine." Sicily smiled.

"You know, it is St. Valentine's Day. Maybe you should spend it with-" Romano covered his sister's mouth before she could finish her sentence.

"It was one time. We were both drunk off of our asses. And may I remind you, that it was you who was supposed to keep track of how much we drank and stop us when we had enough." Sicily pulled Romano's hand off of her mouth, which was formed in a smirk.

"Actually, I don't like getting drunk. The one who was supposed to keep track of the liquor intake was you." Romano paled even further as Sicily hummed a bit. "Anyway, I have to get started on something really important." She began to walk down the hall. "See you!"  
>Romano stood there for a moment before coming to a decision. He was going to follow Sicily, and kill the bastard who dared to touch his little sister.<p>

* * *

><p>Sicily walked out to their Vargas's garage and went straight to the mo-ped in the corner, humming quietly to herself as she did so. She knew that she could do it-she had promised Veneziano. Only problem was that she had to keep Romano in the dark about it. If he knew, the plans of the two younger siblings would be over in a heartbeat.<p>

After dinner the night before, Sicily had spoken with her older brother about tomorrow. He agreed with her plan, but he didn't know her true intention. Sicily was most likely meddling in the love affairs of Italy.

Sicily started up the device and was on her way. She soon stopped outside her first destination.  
>She chained up her mo-ped and walked into the florist, greeting the woman at the counter with a smile.<p>

"Ciao," said the Sicilian with a bright grin.

"Ciao, signorina," said the florist, "May I help you at all?"

"I'm here to pick up an order under the name Signorina Vargas. I believe I called last night?"

"Oh, right. You're the one who ordered the-"

"Not so loud!" Sicily said quickly, cutting the woman off. She looked back towards the entrance. Sicily could have sworn that she saw someone familiar out of the corner of her eye. She shook it off. It must have just been a figment of her imagination.

"But, si. I'm the one who ordered those flowers. I'm here to pick them up." The florist nodded and went into a room at the back of the hop. "And make sure you wrap them up! I don't want anyone to see them!"

"Si, signorina." Sicily tapped her fingers on the counter while she waited. Keeping herself busy was not a specialty of hers. Soon the florist came back with the wrapped bouquet. Sicily paid for it and left.

* * *

><p>As the girl laid her package inside her basket, she didn't noticed that her older brother was watching her from not to far away.<p>

'That English bastard might be good at spying,' Romano thought as he watched his sister, 'But he's not the only one...'

He had been tailing her since this morning. Most Nations-and normal people for that matter-would consider this "stalking", but to Romano, he was just taking on his big brother role.

The Southern Italian snapped out of his thought when he heard an unfamiliar tune cross his ears. He glanced over to see his sister pull her phone out of her pocket and answer it.

"Ciao?" Sicily said as he leaned against the wall. "What did you do?" After a brief pause, Sicily face palmed herself. "Caro Dio, Marcello...you're a real idiota most of the time." Romano raised an eyebrow. He had heard the name Marcello before, but he just couldn't pinpoint where and when.

"Look, I suggest you talk to Francis, or Michelle. They'll know what to do." Sicily sighed. "I swear, you're the most romantic guy I know, yet you still-" Romano's teeth gritted at the sentence. Most romantic guy? Someone was going to die tonight…

"Fine. Do it you're own way. Oh, and by the way, we still on for tonight?" The older brother's eyes raised. What did she just say?

"Because I know you. The only thing you get close to that is a small dinner, and that's it. And besides, you promised that you would watch it with me. I've been waiting far too long, and Arthur is beginning to pester me about it. It makes me want to slap him." Now, Romano understood what she was talking about. England had been trying to get on Sicily's good side since the 1960s. He had done it too, but the two were on a rocky edge. England had recently asked Sicily to watch something from his country, but what it was, Romano wasn't paying attention to it.

"I don't do it because it'll screw up diplomatic relations." Sicily sighed. "You wouldn't understand. Anyway, see you tonight. Ciao." Sicily hung up on Marcello. As she stuffed her phone in her pocket and drove away, only one thought came to Romano's mind. Whoever Marcello was, he wasn't going to be seen for a long time.

* * *

><p>Sicily drove halfway across town to her next location. She thought about her evening tonight. It seemed like a good way to spend her night.<p>

She opened the door to the cleaners and stepped inside. It wasn't as busy as she thought she would be, which was good because it would take her at least the rest of the day to get everything ready.

Sicily walked up to the counter and asked the man there if they had the clothing Italy had dropped off a week ago.

"I'm sorry, signorina," he said. "But that suit was taken out earlier today." Sicily's jaw dropped.

"What?" Sicily said. "But that was only supposed to be taken out by two people. Feliciano Vargas and me, Rosaria Vargas." The man shrugged.

"I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do." Sicily sighed and left without another word.

* * *

><p>"ELIZABETA!"<p>

"Sicily, calm down" Hungary said over on the other line as Sicily drove home. "You sound upset."

"I am," Sicily said, "I had this entire evening planned out. And then, some bastard decides to ruin it all!" Hungary sighed.

"You're starting to pick up on Romano's habits…"

"It doesn't matter! What am I going to do?! Everything was supposed to go the way we had planned-"

"Ve?"

"Yeah...I forgot to tell you that I may or may not have told Veneziano… but he doesn't know about what I'm really doing. So, how's it going with Gilbert?" Hungary sighed.

"He's fine. I got him on a date of his own a few hours ago."

"Cool. Could you make sure that you-know-who is at the restaurant tonight? Everything has to go according to plan."

"I vill, and I'm sure you'll think of something to fix your situation." Sicily sighed.

"Grazie, Liz."

* * *

><p>Sicily got back home with a sad look on her face. She didn't know how she was going to fix this mess.<p>

"Ciao, Sicilia!" Sicily heard Italy say as soon as she walked in. She sighed and handed the wrapped flowers to her brother.

"Ciao, Veneziano," she replied. "There was a mix up at the dry-clean-"

"I know, I forgot to tell you. I picked it up yesterday morning." Sicily stared at Italy for a moment before groaning.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked. "I was panicking on the way home!" Italy laughed nervously.

"Sorry, sorella," he said. Sicily turned to head back up the stairs and to her bedroom when Italy stopped her. "Are you doing anything tonight? You should go out and have fun, like I am!" Sicily sighed and leaned against the railing.

"No. I'm just staying home," she answered. "I'm going to check out that thing England's been telling me about." Italy nodded.

"Is anyone going to be here with you?" Sicily hummed in response.

"Marcello is. Don't tell Romano. You know how he's still mad at him." Italy nodded and the two headed up the staircase.

* * *

><p>Romano arrived back home about an hour after Sicily did. Hey, he was on foot, so it was going to take him longer. He didn't even see his siblings until later that evening.<p>

The Southern Italian stood in the doorway between the kitchen and the main living space as he heard footsteps retreating down the stairs. He didn't even move from his spot when he saw it was Veneziano dressed up as if he was going somewhere.

"You remember the address, si?" Sicily asked him. Italy nodded.

"Yes, I do," he replied. Sicily grinned and hugged her brother.

"Have a great time!" she said before the middle Vargas sibling opened the door and slammed it behind him. Sicily grinned and laughed before turning around. She jumped in surprise when she saw Romano standing behind her. The older Italian kept a straight face as the two stared at each other. Sicily laughed nervously.

"Hello, big brother," she said nervously. "How, how long have you been standing there?"

"The entire time," Romano replied. Sicily took a step back as Romano walked towards her. She made a run for the second floor, but South Italy held onto the collar of her shirt. Sicily was jerked back and stood in front of her brother, looking down at the floor.

"Where is Veneziano going?" asked Romano. Sicily stared at the ground. She did the same thing when she was younger and hiding something from Spain and/or Belgium. "Where. Is. He. Going?"

"Out," Sicily said quickly. "He's going out."

"Where?"

"To a restaurant...with a friend…"

"Who is it…" Sicily paused for a moment before trying to make another run for the second floor. Romano grabbed her shirt again and pulled her back. "Who. Is. It?"

"Uh…" Sicily stuttered, "Uh...Well...it's uh…" Romano narrowed his hazel eyes. Sicily sighed and whispered the answer into his ear. HIs eyes narrowed further in anger. "PLease don't be mad…"

"I'm not mad…" Romano said calmly. Sicily sighed. "I'm furious." Sicily laughed nervously. "You and Veneziano kept this a secret from me because why? You know what happened the last time."

"Yes, I know. I was one the who explained everything to him. But, fratello…"

"Don't call me that, I'm pissed at you."

"I know you hate him, but that doesn't mean you can keep Veneziano from him. Besides, all of the Nations take bets on when they'll get together. France actually owes me fifty euros if this pulls through."

"... If you weren't my sister I would kill you."

"Duly noted. If it helps, Hungary had a hand in this too." Romano rolled his eyes.

"I had a feeling she would. Now, if you excuse me, I'm going out." Sicily watched as her brother made his way past her.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"To stop Veneziano from getting even close to the potato bastard." Romano put his hand on the doorknob before turning to Sicily. "And I don't want anyone coming over here, especially whoever the hell Marcello is." Sicily paled.

"How do you-"

"I overheard you talking on the phone. I know your going out on a date with him, and I don't want him anywhere near my sorellina." Sicily smiled and covered her mouth before she ended up bursting out in laughter. Romano raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"What's so funny?" he asked. Sicily wiped a tear from her brown eye as her laughter died down enough for her to speak.

"Romano, do you know who Marcello is?" she giggled.

"Some bastard you're seeing?" Sicily shook her head.

"It's fratellino's human name." Romano blinked several times as he tried to process what she was saying.

"What?"

"Marcello Vargas. That's Seborga's human name." Sicily stopped laughing and stared at Romano blankly. "You forgot his name?"

"...Maybe," Romano said, "I've forgotten everything about him since he burned my tomato plants."

"It was an accident. You didn't have to kick him out of the house for it."

"Yes, I did. No one messes with my tomatoes without paying for it." Sicily sighed and laughed a bit. She told Romano the address of the restaurant before her brother left. Of course, she gave him the wrong location, but that was just part of her plan. Hey, even Romano deserved a little romance on Valentine's Day.

* * *

><p>Seborga arrived a few minutes after Romano left. The two young siblings began to watch the British program England had been trying to get Sicily to view. After the first episode, she thought it was pretty good and the pair continued watching it. However, halfway through the second episode, there was a knock on the door.<p>

Sicily and Seborga exchanged glances before they both got up to answer it. Seborga opened the door to reveal no one behind it. Sicily glanced down to see a beautiful bunch of red roses laying on the doorstep. In the flowers, there was a note. Seborga plucked it out.

"_Your favorite flowers red, Your sea is a beautiful blue,_" The younger read out loud, "_I wish I could tell you how much I like you._" Sicily began to blush heavily as Seborga flipped the card in his hands. "There's no signature." He grinned. "Looks like big sister has herself an admirer~" Sicily laughed quietly.

"I doubt it," she said, "Everyone knows that Romano is protective. None of them can get even near me." Seborga shrugged.

"I'm the most romantic out of all of us, sorella," he said, "You said so yourself. Love is always possible if you try hard enough. Now, let's head back inside. I wanna see what happens." Seborga headed back into the house. Sicily looked down at the roses again before turning back. That's when her ears caught the sound of someone fleeing. She turned around to see someone leaving the property. Her eyes grew wide. She dropped the flowers on the doorstep and ran after the figure.

"Wait!" she called out. The figure picked up their pace, and so did Sicily. She was pretty fast, even when not in retreat. Running from the Allies several thousand times would do that to someone.

The person turned down an alleyway, and Sicily came to a skidding stop. Her brown orbs gazed down the alley. There was no one there. She crept down the passage and found a small note. She picked it up and read the caption.

"_Happy Valentine's Day, my princess._" Sicily blushed once again before looking around the street. There was no one there. She smiled before glancing back down at the note. "Grazie. And Buon San Valentino."

* * *

><p>And neither brother knew, when they returned home, why she had been blushing so hard. They didn't even notice the vase of roses and the two notes laying on her bedside table.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Who do you think wrote the notes?<strong>


	6. Training Hard

**Training Hard**

* * *

><p><em>While I really just literally ran about a two miles (For those of you who are wondering, I laid down right after this. I am very short for my height, and a small person at 4'11. And I'm fifteen. I find that kind of sad.) when this idea came to me, I'm pretty sure Sicily had a lot more troubling work than that to do. It has been stated before that Sicily wasn't allowed to fight for her country due to her gender. Sexism- discrimination due to gender- much? Anyway, having no military experience, Sicily was given a low expectation by a certain Axis member. I'm not naming anyone, but if you read a previous chapter, I'm sure that you'll be able to figure out who I am speaking of. But now, Sicily is determined to make a reputation for herself among the Axis... and hopefully try not to get protective of Italy during her training. Enjoy!<em>

* * *

><p>"Count off!"<p>

"Uno~!"

"Ni."

"It's time to start our train-" Italy raised his hand. It was that time when the Axis began their training session. However, due to the recent events of yesterday, the Axis had one more member.

"Vhat is it, Italy?" Germany said with a sigh.

"Shouldn't we wait for mia sorella?" said the Italian

"Und vhere is your Schwester Italy?"

"Uh…" Italy sweatdropped and laughed nervously. "I don't know. Romano said she was already here…" Germany pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Don't you think zhat maybe he lied to you?!" Italy nervously laughed again before nodding. Along with Germany, Romano hadn't been too excited about Sicily joining the Axis. In fact his exact words were: "There is no way I'm letting my sorellina anywhere near that goddamn potato bastard!" It was one of those strange circumstances where Germany and Romano actually agreed on something.

"I'm here!" The Axis turned their heads to see Sicily running towards them. She jogged up, nearly out of breath. She had a small, semi-healed cut on her forehead. "I am so sorry that I'm late! I overslept."

"Sorella?" Italy asked. "What happened...uh…" He pointed to the same area Sicily was bleeding out of. Sicily gave him a quizzical look before touching the spot and pulling back.

"I...uh...I fell down the stairs…" She laughed nervously. Germany pinched the bridge of his nose.

"I don't care," he said, "Just get in line vith zhe ozhers." Sicily nodded and got in line beside Japan. "As I said before, it's time to start our training. Italy und Japan, I vant you to start out vith twenty laps. Understood?" Italy sighed, and both nations nodded before taking off. "Sicily, you'll start out vith five. Under-"

"Why do I have far less than the other two?" Sicily asked. "They get twenty, and I get five. Why is that?"

"Granted by zhat you just joined us, und zhat combined vith zhe fact zhat you have no prior training, I believe zhat it is most likely you vouldn't make it halfvay zhough vhat zhe ozhers have to do."

"Are you saying I'm weak?"

"I'm not saying zhat I am. Just go." Sicily clenched her hands together repeatedly, releasing all of her anger at the statement. Out of all things, only a few things would make Sicily angry. One of those things was being called weak.

She sighed and looked the German in the eye. Sicily raised her hand in a half-hearted salute.

"Sì, capitano," Sicily said through her teeth before taking off running with the others.

* * *

><p>'Goddamn it,' Sicily thought to herself, 'I can see why Romano hates him so much… but still...'<p>

"Sicily."

'I want Veneziano's friends to like me. Japan does. He voted for me to be in the Axis.'

"Sicily."

'How can I get Germany to accept the fact that I'm part of the Axis now?'

"SICILY." The Italian girl came to a stop as her heels grinded against the dirt. Unfortunately, it didn't go as flawlessly as she had planned. Sicily's heel hit harshly against a stone, stopping her abruptly. She tripped and fell face first into the ground. A pair of small, gentle hands helped her to her feet. As she spat out the dirt in her mouth, Sicily turned to see her brother beside her. She smiled before seeing the other two Axis members walking towards her. She dusted off her clothes and stood up straight.

"Vhy didn't you stop vhen I asked you to?" Germany asked.

"Why do you think?" said Sicily, crossing her arms over her chest, "I didn't hear you." Germany narrowed his gaze, and Sicily dropped her arms. She shuffled behind Italy. Germany groaned.

"You all are dismissed," said the German as he walked away from the others. Japan followed quietly behind. Italy bounced behind them. Sicily, however, remained on the dirt track. She looked behind her and then back at the Axis. A spark lit in her dirty brown eyes as she remembered the conversation she had with Germany earlier.

"No," said Sicily in probably the firmest tone she could use. "I am not leaving." The Axis froze and turned back to their female member.

"Vhat did you just say?"

"You heard me. Loud and clear, and I'm pretty sure that I didn't stutter. I said no." Sicily crossed her arms over her chest once again. "I'm not leaving." Italy put his hands behind his back, most likely playing with his fingers. He knew why she was doing this. The others did not, and that's the way Sicily wanted to keep it. Japan remained emotionless. Germany stood there, unblinking.

"Sorella… Penso proprio che io e te dovremmo parlare di questa-"

"No, Veneziano. I don't want to talk about this. I know what I'm doing."

"Sicily, listen to Italy," said Germany. "One mistake vill possibly be your downfall in zhe future."

"No. I want to prove myself." Germany raised an eyebrow at her. Sicily sighed. "You treated me like I didn't know what I was doing. I do. I've watched all three of you for two months. I think I know what I'm doing when it comes to this."

"How do you expect to do that?" Sicily uncrossed her arms. She sighed.

"Nevermind… but I will prove I can be just like anyone of you. I know I can."

"Good luck vith zhat." Germany walked away, with the rest of the Axis following behind. Sicily sighed before following along with the rest.

* * *

><p>Italy dropped down into his bed. It was a nice and beautiful night. But he was tired. He didn't have time to enjoy it.<p>

The Northern Italian curled up under the blankets, filling himself with warmth and comfort. He was just about to fall asleep, when he heard the door slam shut from down below. Italy jumped a bit, before going out to his window. He saw a figure in the darkness, right at the front door. Eventually, the figure became recognizable as his sister. He became far more curious, wondering what she was doing at this hour. Sicily looked around before running off. Italy just shrugged this off, and went to sleep.

* * *

><p>Weeks went by. The Axis began to notice something weird about their eighteen year old member. After each training session, Sicily was getting noticeably more and more exhausted than she normally was after a session. She was smiling brightly as well. When asked about it, all she would say is that they would find out soon enough. Eventually, that day came when they did find out.<p>

"Count off!"

"Uno~!"

"Ni."

"Tre."

"It's time to start our training," said Germany. "You all know vhat to do. Italy, Japan und I vill start vith twenty. Sicily-"

"Twenty," Sicily cut in. "I can run the twenty." Germany groaned with frustration.

"Ve have spoken about zhis before. You're not ready to-"

"Well, you've never given me the chance to show you I can. I can show you now that I can."

"My answer is still no."

"Please, Germany?" Italy asked, interrupting the two-way conversation. "You never know! She might even be faster than you!"

"Fine. Vhatever. But I don't vant to hear a vord from eizher one of you if she can't do it." Sicily smiled brightly and nodded.

"Yes, sir!" She said. With a sigh, the Axis began running.

* * *

><p>Having finished rather early, Germany watched as the rest of his allies ran the track. As usual, Italy was lagging behind at a turtle-like pace. Germany had to reminding him to speed up. Japan was keeping his normal pace, however, someone was tagging along behind him only by a few feet. At the exact same pace. Although she looked like she was about to collapse at any second, Sicily still kept pushing herself to go further. Her pace never slowed. Germany had told her countless times to stop, but the girl just waved him off. She had a great deal of determination. That was something to be admired. However, it was also something that could hide another fact from prying eyes.<p>

As Japan finished, Sicily came to a stop next to him. She was smiling.

"Venti!" she said through heavy breaths as Germany walked over to meet them both. "That's the entire twenty!"

"It appears so," said the German, "However... you're pushing yourself far too hard."

"I am not. I'm still standing." Germany tapped her forehead.

"Vhat is vith you und trying to behave like one of us?"

"I don't understand what you mean." Japan placed a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"I berieve that Germany-san is saying is that you're not acting Itarian at arr," Japan explained. Sicily wrung her fingers behind her back in embarrassment. "You're pushing yourserf far past your rimit, Siciry-san." Sicily brushed Japan off of her.

"I'm fine, Japan. Really."

"Are you?" Sicily bit down on her lip. A flow of lies she could use flowed in and out of her mind, but she knew that none of them would work. In the end, she sighed.

"I just wanted you to treat me like an actual soldier, Germany." She shook her head. "No, I wanted to be treated like Japan and Veneziano do. I see the way you treat them, but you treat me differently. And I know it's just because I'm a ragazza. Because I'm a girl." There was silence until Germany sighed out of pure frustration.

"Zhat's not even close," he said. Sicily raised an eyebrow.

"Che cosa? But that's what I thought. Nearly everyone I've ever known has treated me differently because I'm a girl. If that's not the reason, then what is?"

"I said it before, und I'll say it again. You have no military training or experience. Zhere's a reason You're being treated differently is because you don't know vhat you're doing. Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal..." Sicily looked up at the blonde. "But... we are friends then... right?"

"I barely even know you."

"That didn't stop my brother from becoming your ally. As I can tell, you both are pretty close now."

"Yes. Vhat's your point?" Sicily laughed.

"Nothing. I just want to be friends."

"You'll have to earn that." Sicily sighed, but straightened up.

"Then I'll try my best. If Veneziano trusts you and your word, then I do too!" The three of them were silent for a moment, until a cloud of dust shot past.

"Inghilterra sta per arrivare me!"

"ITALY!" Sicily and Japan watched as Germany ran off after the Italian.

"Does this happen often?" Sicily asked the Asian. Japan nodded.

"On most occasions, yes," he replied. Sicily paled.

"Wait... the Allies don't actually spy on us, do they?"

"I have seen Engrand once or twice. Why?" Sicily crossed her arms, but instead of defiance like before, it was more out of insecurity.

"It - It's nothing. I was just wondering." Sicily looked back along the dirt road, a dampened look on her face. The fact that Japan just told her made her feel uncomfortable. She looked on as thick, gray clouds began to roll in. She turned back to Japan. "Since we're finished, why don't we head inside? I have a feeling it might rain."

"Shouldn't we wait for Germany-san and Itary-kun?" Japan asked. Sicily shook her head.

"They'll be fine."

"Hai." The two walked together back into a nearby building. However, Sicily couldn't shake off the feeling that they were being watched. She always let her fear get the best of her. After all, fear is the worst enemy. And Sicily had yet to defeat it.


	7. Fight Back Your Fear

**Fight Back Your Fear**

* * *

><p><em>As mentioned in the last chapter, Sicily's worst enemy was her fear. Only question is, her fear of what? What could Sicily possibly be afraid of? Well... there are common, little fears like being afraid of thunder or heights. Then, there are childhood fears, like when you were little and thought there was a monster in your room. And finally, you have those fears that stick with you your whole life. These are the ones that get to you. And this is where Rosaria's greatest fears lie.<em>

* * *

><p>Sicily ran straight across the area. Her feet slammed against the dirt. The dust around her clouded up and settled in her hair, clothes, and on her skin. Basically, it was anywhere that it could attach itself to. The sound of distant explosions were ringing in her ears. Sicily look on ahead, catching Germany and Japan not far from her. She picked up her pace. Sicily slid to a stop right beside the German, falling on the ground in the process.<p>

"How long was that?" she asked. Germany stopped the watch he had in his hand.

"Four minutes, twelve seconds," he answered as Sicily stood up. The girl groaned.

"Only a minute less than_ fratello's_." Sicily brushed off her clothes. "You know, it wasn't really necessary to throw explosives at me."

"Have you ever been on a battlefield?"

"No, not technically."

"Zhat's vhy." Sicily sighed and shook her head as Germany reset the watch. "Italy! You're up!" From across the field, Sicily could see her brother nodding and saluting. "_Drei... zwei… eins… Starten!_" Italy took off, running down the length of the field, just as his sister had did. As before, random explosion went off here and there to simulate the battlefield. Sicily winced every time one went off. After a few minutes, Italy reached the finish with the rest of the Axis.

"Can we go have pasta, now, Germany?" Italy asked the blonde. Germany sighed.

"Yes, Italy." Italy smiled. He walked down the field with everyone behind him. About halfway down, Sicily's brown eyes widened. She heard a faint noise coming from up ahead. She knew what it was, and Italy was walking right towards it.

"Veneziano!" she yelled out, but Italy really didn't seem to hear her. As the noise got faster in pace, so did Sicily. She wrapped her arms around her brother, and the force of her simply colliding into Feliciano knocked them both to the ground. They skidded into the dirt just as an explosion went off, not to far from where the siblings were. Sicily winced slightly as she rolled off of her brother, breathing heavily. Italy sat up, helping his sister to stand, but Sicily just batted his hands away. "_Lasciami in pace, Veneziano. Sto bene_."

"_No, non lo sei! Appena mi ha salvato da far saltare in aria!_" replied Italy. Sicily groaned as she went to sit up, allowing dirt and other foreign particles deeper into her back. She looked up as Japan and Germany walked over to them.

"You didn't see if the explosives were delayed or not?!" she said in a rather angry tone.

"I did," Germany said as he pulled Italy up. "I vouldn't put my soldiers in danger like zhat. Unless it vas one of your explosives, zhen it vasn't my fault." Sicily groaned as Japan knelt by her. She looked up at Germany.

"I'm not even going to question how one of the Italian explosives managed to get in with yours." She allowed Japan to help her up. Blood stained the ground from where she had previously laid, and the back of her shirt was shredded in several places from the force of the explosion, and from those places there were several crude cuts in the girl's flesh, most likely mixed in with sweat, dirt and whatever else was on the ground after she rolled off of Italy. She groaned ever so slightly as she moved upward.

"_Non c'era bisogno di farlo, sorellina. Mi sarebbe stato bene,_" he said. Sicily stiffened as Japan pulled her to her feet.

"Veneziano?" she said. Italy hummed in response. "Don't call me little sister." And that was the last thing Sicily said to anyone of the boys as she was dragged back to the building that Germany lived in.

* * *

><p>As soon as the three arrived back to the home, Sicily grabbed her clothes <strong>(AN: She doesn't train in her uniform, by the way, a lot like Italy does.)** and bolted up the steps. She locked herself in the bathroom.

Sicily peeled off the shirt she was wearing and discarded it into the wastebin. It was stained with blood, and the back was torn beyond repair. She hissed as she did this, still not know what could possibly be in her cuts that could cause them to not heal. Too much dirt maybe?

Sicily turned and looked in the mirror. She hissed. Her back was nothing but dirt and blood. How she didn't pass out from blood loss already, she really didn't know. Grabbing a nearby rag, Sicily dampened it before running it along the skin of her back. The water ran through the open wounds, rinsing out any foreign particles. When she saw that the flesh of the cut she was working on had successfully begun to knit back together, she moved on to the next one. Eventually, her back was left without a cut in it. No blood or dirt remained, but Sicily wanted to get home as soon as possible to clean herself.

She quickly tossed her uniform on and headed down the stairs to face her allies. The first thing she was hit with was a flurry of rapid Italian from her brother. Even though she could speak it, at the speed Italy was going, she didn't quite understand it. After about three seconds, Sicily intervened.

"_Fratello,_" she said calmly. "I can't understand a single word you are saying."

"I berieve that Itary-kun is worried about you, Siciry-san," Japan explained. "You didn't say anything to either of us after what you did." Sicily grabbed her wrist from behind her back.

"Well… I don't really understand what you're saying, Japan. Was what I did wrong? Was I not supposed to save my brother from being blown to bits?"

"If Italy vas human, zhen your actions vould have been right," Germany added. "However, considering ve are all Nations, strictly speaking, vhat you did vasn't necessary. Italy vould have been fine eventually."

"I know."

"And you did it because?" At such the simple question, Sicily's eyes narrowed.

"He's my brother." Sicily made a quick movement for the door, but was stopped by the person she named only seconds before.

"_Sicilia_," Italy said. "There's more than that."

"No, there isn't. Now, please. Let me go." Italy shook his head. Sicily sighed and turned back to the Axis. "I'm not going to tell any of you why I pushed Veneziano out of the way."

"Why not?" Sicily pried her arm from Italy's hand.

"_Il motivo per cui mi fa paura, Veneziano_." Italy just stared at her, while both Japan and Germany stood by with blank looks, not being able to speak Italian themselves. Tears began to well up in Sicily's eyes as the thought kept repeating in her head. "You wanted to know. And now you know."

"Know vhat exactly?" asked Germany. "Have you forgotten zhat Japan und I do not know how to speak Italian?" Sicily sighed.

"The reason scares me. I don't want to talk about it." She leaned against the doorframe. "I don't expect any of you to understand. Anyway, can we please change the subject?"

* * *

><p>Due to how long the Axis had stayed, it became too late into the night for any of them to leave. Therefore, the Asian and the other two Europeans had to stay with Germany for the night.<p>

Sicily was sound asleep downstairs. Well... not completely. Her mind was in a flurry after what had happened that day. Her face was damp with the cold sweat of a nightmare.

* * *

><p><em>Sicily was standing in the middle of a field. However, she wasn't alone. Someone was holding her tightly, seeming determined not to let go. In front of her was a man with a face she couldn't make out and a gun. Tears were welling up in her brown eyes. Just a few feet away from them, were her brothers, the Axis, Spain, Belgium and France. They were all bound with their hands behind their backs and blindfolded. They all just stood there, not doing anything.<em>

_"Tell us everything you know," said the person holding her. "Or else."_

_"I don't know what you're talking about!" Sicily exclaimed. The man before her raised the gun in his hands. With a single shot, France fell to the ground like a rock. He didn't get up._

_"I'll ask you again. What do you know?"_

_"_Per favore_, I don't know anything!" With another shot from the gun, Belgium went down. Tears threatened to fall. "No! Stop it!"_

_"If you cooperate, then we'll let you and your friend go free. Now, give us the information we want!"_

_"I don't know! Please, let them go!" The man didn't listen. Instead, he shot Spain. He fell to the ground beside the other two fallen. Tears slid down Sicily's face._

_"Give up the information."_

_"What information?!" Another shot. Down went Japan._

_"Will you comply now, girl?"_

_"I don't know what you're asking of me!" Bang. Germany fell onto the ground._

_"Tell us what you know! Now!"_

_"I don't know anything! Please, listen to me!" With another shot, North Italy went down like a rock. Sicily's tears went down harder. "VENEZIANO!"_

_"Do you care to what happens to your family and friends?!" Sicily ignored him, but nodded. "Then why don't you answer my question? What do you know?"_

_"I don't know what you're asking me to do! What do you want?!" With wide eyes, Sicily watched as Romano was shot. "ROMANO!" No one was left standing. They were all lying in pools of their own blood. Sicily was pushed to the ground as she felt hot tears sliding as fast as they could down her face. Looking up, she saw that the people holding her had gone. She sprang to her feet and ran over to her fallen loved ones. She collapsed to the ground in front of them. The Nations were fanned out before her in a perfect circle. Sicily wiped her tears away._

_"Please…" she muttered. "Please… regenerate… I need you, please!"_

_"Sicilia…"_

_Sicily buried her knees into her chest as she watched neither one of the bodies move. "Please! I need you! All of you! This isn't funny! Please, regenerate!"_

_"_Sizilien."

_She looked into the lifeless eyes of the boys and Belgium. None of them looked like they were going to breathe again. "Please…"_

"Shichiriashima."

_Nothing happened. Sicily fell onto the ground, her tears being the only sound heard._

_"No…" she cried, her voice barely audible by this point. "Please… I need you… all of you…" The bodies lay still. "Regenerate… please… Don't leave me…"_

"SICILY!"

* * *

><p>Sicily woke with a sudden start in the darkness of the night. She was breathing heavily and was in a cold sweat. It only took her a few seconds to register that what she had just witnessed had only been a dream, nothing more. However, in the dark, she knew she was not alone.<p>

"_Sorella_?" asked a worried sounding Italy. "Are you alright?" Sicily sighed and blinked away a few remnants of some tears. She wrapped the blanket she had tightly against herself.

"I'm fine, Veneziano," she said without looking her brother in the eye. "It was just a nightmare. Don't worry about me."

"You're lying again," said Germany, who- along with the rest of the Axis- was in the room. "You vere screaming like you vere being murdered." Sicily brought her knees up to her chest.

"I always do that."

"_Nani_?" asked Japan. "What do you mean?"

"It's a habit of mine. I always scream in my sleep when I have a nightmare."

"You were arso shouting, Siciry-san. In Itarian."

"And what was I saying?"

"You were yelling at someone to wake up," Italy translated. "And that you didn't want them to leave you." Little flashes of the dead Nations swirled in Sicily's mind. She tensed up.

"Was I?" she said rather nervously, "I didn't notice!" She laughed in a nervous tone.

"Are you alright?" Sicily nodded with hesitancy. "_Bugiardo_."

"I'm not lying! It was just a nightmare!" The Italian placed a hand on his sister's shoulder.

"You're lying. What happened?" Sicily pushed Italy off of her. "_Rosaria, stai piangendo_." Sicily wiped her eyes, getting rid off any evidence that the salty tears had been there in the first place. Sicily sighed.

"Look, it's fine. My nightmare scared me. That's all. I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me," she said.

"But sorella," said Italy as he wiped away what was left of her tears. "You never cry in your sleep."

"I said I'm fine, Veneziano."

"What happened?" Sicily hummed a small, confused response. "In the dream."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Siciry-san," said Japan. "Itary-kun is worried about you. We arr are."

"Tell us vhat happened," Germany added. "Zhen ve can all go back to sleep." Sicily nodded and sighed.

"I was standing in a field, and someone was holding me... like I was a prisoner," she began, recalling the events of her nightmare. "There was a man in front of me. A man with a gun. In front of him... were all of you. And Romano. And Spain... and Belgium... and France. You were all blindfolded and bound. Then... the person holding me kept asking me for information that I didn't know. Every time I didn't give him what he wanted, the man shot one of you. Eventually, there was no one left and I was released. I went over to you and..."

"None of us would wake up," Italy guessed. Sicily nodded.

"That's when you three woke me up."

"It vas one nightmare," Germany said. "It's nozhing."

"And like I said, I'm fine."

"But you never cry," Italy once again repeated. "It must have really scared you."

"Of course it did. I don't want to-" Sicily suddenly bit down on her lip to stop the rest of the phrase to complete itself.

"You don't want to what?" Japan asked. Sicily shook her head.

"Please?" Italy asked. "It might help you get back to sleep."

"No."

"Answer zhe rest of zhe question, Sicily," Germany ordered.

"No."

"Sicily."

"I said no."

"Vhat vere you going to say?"

"I don't want to answer."

"Sicily. Answer zhe question!"

"Fine!" Sicily shouted, finally have been pushed over the edge. "I was going to say I didn't want to lose any of you!" The room was silent. "I don't want to lose any of you..." Italy sat down beside his sister, allowing her to rest her head on his shoulder. "It scares me half to death whenever you leave to fight. I'm afraid that you'll never come back."

"Just like _Nonno_ did," Italy muttered. Sicily nodded.

"_Sì_."

"That's why you pushed Itary-kun away from the exprosion before," Japan said. Once again, Sicily nodded.

"I don't want to see any of you hurt. I love you guys. You're my friends."

"I vouldn't take zhe term so far," Germany added. "But I can't guarantee zhat ve von't get hurt. However, you can't let zhat affect you."

"You're not helping."

"Vhat I'm saying is zhat ve are all afraid of somezhing, but ve don't let it affect us."

"I'm afraid of losing you, too, _Sicilia,_" added Italy. "But that's why I fight. To keep my friends and family safe!" Sicily sat up. "We all do!" Japan stiffened a little, but nodded as well.

"You can't be afraid of something that might happen. Otherwise, it will," he said.

"Japan is right," Germany said. "Now zhat's settled vith, I'm going back to sleep." The German headed back upstairs.

"Sleep well." Japan followed. Italy stood, pecking his sister lightly on the cheek.

"_Buonanotte, Sicilia,_" he said.

"_Buonanotte, Veneziano,_" Sicily said back before settling down for the night.

* * *

><p>It was only about an hour later when Sicily was woken up once more from a nightmare. It must have been a little one, because her screams did not wake up the Axis. With a groan, she looked out a nearby window. It wasn't even dawn yet, seeing as the moon was still high in the sky. She groaned, trying to get back to sleep. It didn't work. She spent an hour and a half trying to fall back into her dreams. With a small failure of trying to sleep, Sicily sat up, yawning a little bit. She walked over to the window, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders. Sicily stared out into the starry-night sky. The moon was full, and illuminated all that it shone on. She sighed, having the moonlight remind her of those nights spent with Spain. That's when something flickered in the corner of her vision. With an eyebrow and suspicions raised, Sicily made her way for the door. Caution flowed through her veins as she opened it.<p>

Whoever was sitting in the moonlight jumped when they heard the door creak open. Sicily relaxed when she saw Japan sitting in the night.

"Mi dispiace," Sicily said quickly. "I didn't know anyone was out here." Japan nodded.

"It is arright, Sicily-san," the Asian responded. "I didn't know anyone was still awake."

"What are you doing out here?"

"I had troubre farring back to sreep." Sicily hummed a little bit.

"Do you mind if I join you?" Japan shook his head, sending Sicily the signal to take her place. They sat together in silence for a few moments. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"_Nani_?"

"Nothing. I just had another nightmare. I wasn't a big deal. Just a little one." Japan nodded, but didn't really say anything. Sicily laughed awkwardly. The silence was starting to get to her. "The moon is beautiful tonight, isn't it?" Japan nodded. "You know, I used to be afraid of the moon."

"Afraid of the moon?" Japan repeated. Sicily nodded.

"_Sì_, I was. There used to be this myth about the moon that scared me when I was a bambina. They said that the full moon could transform a man into a wolf." Sicily laughed a little bit. "I don't even remember why it scared me. I just remember being afraid to even look out the window every time there was a full moon. So, Spain used to make me sit out in the moonlight with him. And eventually, my fear went away."

"That's... rather interesting..." Japan muttered. Sicily looked over at him. The Asian's brown eyes were staring at the ground. "That's another fear of yours, correct?"

"It was, but yes. I suppose," Sicily answered. There was silence. "Japan? What are you afraid of?"

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Your greatest fear. What is it?" Japan's body noticeably tensed.

"I rather not answer that question."

"Oh..." Sicily stared back at the moon. "I'm afraid of losing everyone."

"I know."

"But that's not it." Japan hummed a small, confused response. "I'm afraid of losing everyone... and I'm afraid that I'll be the cause of it. That I'll be alone because of something I did."

"I don't understand." Sicily put her head in her knees.

"Have you ever done something you regret? Something that hurt someone close to you?" Japan hesitated before nodded. "Were you scared at all? After you realized what you had done?" Once again, Japan nodded.

"It is an unpreasant feering. It is hard riving with such knowredge." Sicily nodded a bit, lifting her head up. She finally understood why Japan had been acting the way he did from the start of the conversation. That, and she finally heard what he was saying.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know. But, I'm sure they'll forgive you."

"We're at war with them." Sicily felt sweat running down her face. Maybe she wasn't helping the situation.

"It will get better..." she said.

"You're an innocent Nation, " said Japan. "You've never seen what we can do to each other." Sicily kept silent, although somewhere in the back of her mind, she held the urge to contradict the statement."Your fears are an exampre of that." Sicily snapped out of her thoughts.

"My fear...?" She repeated. "What does me being afraid of losing everyone have to do with my innocence?"

"You won't be abre to stay innocent forever. War can change a person. Armost arr of us have seen it happen. What you do in the battrefierd could decide what happens to you. "

"You're starting to sound like Germany."

"That may be. But, as I was saying before, your actions on the battrefierd decide what happens to you. As I see it, you have no reason to worry."

"Why is that?"

"Italy-kun, Germany-san and I wirr be there with you." Sicily smiled and stood up, rubbing her eyes.

"_Grazie_," she said with a yawn. "If you don't mind, I'm going back to sleep." She turned to head inside, but was stopped once again.

"Sicily-san," said Japan. Sicily turned back a bit, her hand already on the doorknob. "Before, Itary-kun carred you something when he was speaking to you. He carred you Rosaria."

"_Sì_. It's my name. My human name, at least. Rosaria Vargas." Sicily turned towards the door. She whipped around again. "If you don't mind me asking, what's your human name? I know we're not close enough that I should know but after tonight..." Japan nodded.

"Honda Kiku," he responded. "In western curture it wourd be Kiku Honda." The European nodded.

"Kiku Honda," she repeated. "It fits you." Sicily shot Japan a small smile."_Buonanotte, Kiku._"

"_Oyasumi, Rosaria-san_."

* * *

><p>By the next morning, Sicily had returned to her normal persona. It seemed like the little talk from the night before with Japan had worked on expelling her fear, or maybe lessening it to a point where she could ignore it. However, that did not stop her from putting Romano in a death-like grip the next time she saw him.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Translations (Where necessary anyway...)<strong>

**Lasciami in pace, Veneziano. Sto bene. - ****Leave me alone, Veneziano. I'm fine.**

**No, non lo sei! Appena mi ha salvato da far saltare in aria!- No, you're not! You just saved me from blowing up!**

**Non c'era bisogno di farlo, sorellina. Mi sarebbe stato bene. - ****There was no need to do it, little sister. I would have been fine.**

**Il motivo per cui mi fa paura, Veneziano. - The reason why scares me, Veneziano.**

**Bugiardo. - Liar.**

**Rosaria, stai piangendo. - Rosaria, you're crying.**


	8. When Sicily Met The Boys

**When Sicily Met the Boys**

* * *

><p><em>A small little flashback on how Rosaria met the pair she came to know as her elder brothers. As you can see, one of them didn't exactly go as smoothly as you would hope...<em>

* * *

><p><strong>A long time ago...<strong>

* * *

><p><em>A small boy sat by the window of his home. It was raining. The young boy, who was known as Italy Veneziano, was watching the rain plummet to the earth. It was peaceful and quiet. Italy stuck out his hand in hope of catching some of them. He was a curious little boy.<em>

_Italy pulled his hand back in when the cold water hit it. He laughed a little. The cold water didn't matter. What mattered was his grandfather was coming home today. Italy hated it when he left. He would be alone. People would come and check up on the little child every now and then, but it wasn't them. Italy loved spending time with his grandfather. And that's who he wanted to be with. And so now, Italy was waiting for him to come back._

_As if on cue, Italy spotted a figure in the distance. Coming closer, he saw it was a man, using a red cape to shield himself from the rain. A large smile stretched across Italy's face._

_"_Nonno Roma_!" he called out with delight, waving a hand frantically. Rome gave a little smile, but didn't wave back. He walked into the home. Italy immediately greeted him by wrapping his arms around his grandfather's legs. Rome ran a hand through the child's hair._

_"Hello, Italy," said the Empire. Italy smiled and laughed. He looked up at his grandfather with a curious look. Rome usually greeted his grandson differently when he arrived home. Why was today different?_

_"Are you alright, _Nonno_?" asked the young child. "You're acting different." Rome seemed to hesitate a little bit._

_"I'm fine, _Italia_. I just don't know how to tell you."_

_"Tell me what?" Rome knelt down to Italy's eye level. His cape was covering one of his arms. Italy was beginning to worry. "Ve, you didn't get hurt, did you?!" Rome shook his head._

_"Nothing like that. Let me show you." The man moved the fabric aside to reveal what he was holding. Italy's eyes widened a little. In his grandfather's arms was a little girl. She was asleep and covered in filth._

_"Who is she?" Italy asked. His eyes brightened. "Is she like us?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Who is she?" Italy repeated. Rome stood up, still holding onto the child._

_"Syra-" Rome started to say, only to cut himself off. "_Sicilia_. Her name is Sicily. She's your sister."_

_"Sister...?" Italy tilted his head out of confusion. Sister? That word didn't belong in his vocabulary. Rome walked off with the child in hand. Italy followed after him. "What's a... sister?" Rome laughed._

_"_Italia_," he began to explain, "A sister is like a brother. Only they're a girl, like Sicilia."_

_"Oh."_

_"You wait here. I have to get your sister cleaned up a bit." Italy nodded and went back to the window, waiting to officially meet his new sister._

* * *

><p><em>The girl now named Sicily awoke with a start when she found herself wet with water. She was wet and really didn't like it. Long story short, she put up a small fight against getting herself cleaned. By the time she was done, the floor was far wetter than her.<em>

_Sicily looked at her image in the water. Her hair wasn't matted anymore. It was bright, soft and fell down in soft waves down her face and back. Well, except that one to the right. The man who she was now to call her grandfather gave her different clothes than what she had on before. She looked less Grecian than she had before._

_Rome sent Sicily off afterwards. The young child was curious of her new surroundings. Sicily's first task was to try and navigate her way around._

_She walked around for a few minutes until she saw someone. They were standing at the window, and Sicily couldn't tell if they were a boy or a girl._

_The young girl hid behind a wall as she watched the child. They had auburn hair like hers. They were dressed in a similar fashion as well. While they looked fairly innocent and harmless, Sicily was still afraid to approach them._

_Sicily didn't need to do anything. The child turned around on their own. Sicily froze when they smiled. The child waved at her. However, she still remained as a statue. The child tilted their head in confusion. They walked over to Sicily. From this point of view, Sicily could tell that they were at least two years older than her. She balled up her hands against her chest._

_"Are you alright?" They asked. The child's voice sounded like a girl's. Sicily nodded slowly._

_"Y-Yes..." she stuttered. "I'm fine..." She took a small step back._

_"You don't have to be scared!" Could they actually tell about that? "I'm Italy! Italy Veneziano!" Italy smiled, most likely trying to calm her down._

_"Sicily..." the girl said, remembering the name she was given. She stared at the child before her. "Who are you...?"_

_"My name is Italy! I'm your big brother! You're my sister!" Sicily blinked for a second. The child was a boy. Okay…?_

_"You're my... brother?" She repeated, letting the words lay inside of her mind. Italy nodded. "What do brothers do?" The boy shrugged._

_"I don't know. But I'm sure they act like big brother France, and that other brother I don't know cause I haven't met him yet." Sicily looked up at Italy._

_"I have more than one brother?"_

_"Yes." Sicily smiled a bit. Italy took her hand. "Do you want to watch the rain with me?" Unsure of what to answer, Sicily let Italy drag her to the window. With a little help from her new brother, Sicily managed to look out of it. She rested her head on his shoulder. Later on, the pair came to fall asleep at the window. And Sicily learned that having a brother might not be so bad._

* * *

><p><strong>A long time ago… but not as long ago as before…<strong>

_A little girl sat on top of a hill, her face buried in her knees. She looked down at the scene below. The other countries were talking with each other. Socializing with each other. And where was Sicily? On top of a hill. Alone. It's not like she didn't want to be with the others, she did. She was just a shy little girl._

_Sicily sat there day in and day out, just wondering how to approach the others. This had been… what? Her fiftieth day trying to figure this out? And yet, she still hadn't. Sicily stretched her legs out, and placed her hands firmly on the ground. Maybe this was the day she would go out and talk to someone… or maybe not. Sicily was scared to death of talking to the others. One thing only danced across her mind when she thought of talking to the countries. Rejection. What if they hated her? What if they rejected her? They would tell her she wasn't a country. That she was too small to be._

_Sicily stood up. No. This was the day she was going to be brave. She took a breath and went to move forward. She would have done so if someone hadn't called out to her. Sicily quickly turned around to see someone about five years older than her standing behind her. She gave out a little yelp of surprise. The child before her was a young boy, not that much older than her. He had brown hair that had a wild curl resting to the right. His eyes were a bright hazel._

_"What are you doing up here?" said the boy. Sicily stuttered to find the words to say._

_"I-I-I'm… uh…" Sicily stuttered out, brushing her bangs behind her ear. "I am… uh…"_

_"Can't you speak right at all?" The girl turned bright red._

_"I-I-I can!"_

_"Then why don't you, eh?" Sicily wrung her fingers together, turning redder with embarrassment and shyness still._

_"I… I'm r-r-really trying to…"_

_"Tch. I shouldn't have talked to you. You're just a girl."_

_"Wh-What's wrong with that?" Sicily's voice had taken a slightly stronger tone._

_"Girls are weak, aren't they?" The girl turned bright red._

_"No, we aren't!" she said rather suddenly. "I am a girl. And I'm not weak! I'm a… a…" It took her a second to remember the word she was taught. "A Nation!" The boy began laughing. "What's so funny?!"_

_"You're a Nation?" he asked. Sicily nodded. "I find that hard to believe." Sicily turned red._

_"Why? You don't know what a Nation looks like!"_

_"I'm a Nation, too." Sicily clamped her mouth shut. She sighed, and brushed some of her hair out of her face. "And I doubt that a girl could be a Nation."_

_"Hey! That wasn't very nice! I'm sure there were some girls like me!" The boy laughed again. Sicily turned redder. She had been told of a few girls that were Nations as well. She had never seen them._

_Sicily looked over at the boy again. Maybe this was her chance to be brave a little? That God was testing her? She sighed and walked a little closer to him._

_"I didn't mean to sound so weak…" she said. "My name is-" Before Sicily could say anymore, her foot was caught on a nearby tree root that had become uprooted. She fell face first into the boy, which made him lose his balance. Both Sicily and the boy went rolling down the hill._

_Sicily closed her eyes tightly as she rolled down. Eventually, she came to a stop at the bottom. Sicily laid on the ground for a second. She heard footsteps from behind her. Before she could even get up, someone latched their hand onto hers and pulled her to her feet. It was Italy. He had also pulled the other boy to his feet as well._

_"Ve, are you alright?" He asked. Sicily nodded._

_"Does it look like I'm alright?!" the boy said. "I just was pushed down-"_

_"I didn't mean to push you... I just fell..."_

_"No, you didn't! You did that on purpose!"_

_"Please don't fight!" cried out Italy. Brothers and sisters are supposed to love each other!" The boy and Sicily froze._

_"What?" asked the boy. Italy nodded. "I only have one brother. Not a sister."_

_"Veneziano?" Sicily asked._

_"I was going to tell you," Italy said. "But I could never find you both in the right time and place."_

_"You avoided it," muttered the boy Sicily now knew was her other brother. Italy laughed nervously. Sicily smiled a bit._

_"I think that having more than one brother will be a good thing," she said. She turned to the boy. "My name is Sicily." The boy didn't say anything. "Do you have name?"_

_"Of course I do," he said finally. "Romano. And I don't want an idiota sorellina." Romano began walking away. Sicily waved to Italy before following after him._

_She finally caught up with Romano when the elder looked back._

_"Quit following me," he said. Sicily shook her head._

_"Your my brother," said the younger._

_"What's your point?"_

_"I wanna know more about you! I've never met you before and-" Romano cut Sicily off before she could continue._

_"I wanted you to talk before, but now can you just be quiet?!" Sicily nodded. Romano walked away once more, prompting his sister to follow after._

_"Quit following me!"_

_"No!" Sicily laughed before following. Maybe this wasn't so bad after all..._


End file.
